Best Weed Eater Reviews and Buying Guide

Owning your own home is a great source of pride, a sign that you have really come into your own and have started to achieve some important life goals. However, it also means that all of the upkeep, both inside and outside your home, is your burden to bear. In order to keep up your curb appeal, you need to have the right tools on hand, one of the most important of which is a quality weed eater. And today we will help you find the best weed eater for you!

Weed eaters—also known as string trimmers, edgers, weed wackers, and weed trimmers—allow you to take care of small jobs quickly, but without sacrificing precision. They are designed to be used to trim grass and weeds around fence lines, sidewalks, hedges, and other borders where a nice, clean line is needed. If you want ﻿﻿﻿a lawn that looks as though it has been professionally attended to, a weed eater is a must. To help you make an informed choice, we have completed weed eater reviews for you.

How Weed Eaters Work

While there are some variations, most weed eaters tend to operate in the same manner: a plastic string is whirled around at high speeds, allowing it to slice through grass and weeds. This string is placed at one end of the weed eater with the handle at the other end and there should be a protective cover that goes over the string, reducing the chances of injury occurring. All of the best weed eaters on our list feature these basics.

Why You Should Purchase a Weed Eater

Since you are looking into weed eater reviews, you probably already know some reasons why you need one. Could you keep your home looking nice without purchasing a weed eater? Yes, you absolutely could.

However, forgoing a weed eater means significantly more manual labor on your part. In order to take care of the trimming and edging, you would need to use manual shears along sidewalks, driveways, fences, and other edges present in your landscape. This is laborious, time consuming, and likely to leave you feeling worse for wear. Using a weed eater gets the job done quickly, with little effort on your part.

Our choice for the top weed eater is the BLACK+DECKER LST136W 40V MAX Lithium Ion String Trimmer, 13" weed eater. It is a versatile weed eater, designed to switch from trimming to edging with a simple twist. It is battery powered, but uses a 40V lithium battery to give you maximum runtime before needing to recharge. Plus, the handle can be adjusted for users of various heights, taking some of the strain off your back.

Now, while this is our top pick, that doesn’t mean it is the best weed eater for you. Let’s take a look at some features you should use when evaluating weed eaters and checking our weed eater reviews.

Important Features to Consider

Not all weed eaters are created equal. To help you navigate your purchase, let’s take a look at the features that tend to really make a difference, and that we used in our weed eater reviews.

Handle Length

When using a weed eater, you want to be able to stand straight up, using good posture. If the handle length is too short, you will find yourself hunching over to get the job done. And if it is too long? Then you will end up leaning away from the weed eater or straining to raise it higher than feels natural. In both cases, you will end up with muscle pain and could end up with a back injury. If you are not sure what would be a comfortable length for you, look for weed eaters with adjustable handles.

Power Source

Weed eaters can use one of four different types of power sources: plug-in, battery, plug-in/battery combo, and gas. Each of these power sources comes with its own set of pros and cons. Let’s take a look at them below.

Plug-In

Plug-in weed eaters use electricity to power the motor. This tends to be fine for people who have smaller yards and amble outdoor power sources. Some of the benefits to purchasing a plug-in weed eater are that that they are easy to use and maintain and are also very lightweight since there is no large battery or fuel tank adding to the weight of the weed eater. However, you are limited in your range since you are tied to an outlet, and the cord can trip you up as you work.

Battery

Battery-powered weed eaters, as you would expect, use a battery as the power source. This is great for those with medium sized yards who need a bit more freedom of movement but don’t need to complete large jobs. Battery-powered weed eaters are relatively lightweight, though slightly heavier than electric models. The biggest problem with them is that the battery means you can only work for as long as it holds a charge, and after a while, you might need to replace the battery.

Plug-In/Battery Combo

These combination weed eaters are designed to give you the best of both worlds, allowing you to connect to a power source when possible and then switch to battery when it isn’t. This allows you greater run time than you would have with a battery alone. The cons to using a combination weed eater are the same as those you will run into when using a plug-in or battery-powered weed eater.

Gas

Gas weed eaters give you plenty of power and run time, making them the best choice for those with larger properties. They are very powerful and tend to deliver professional results. However, they are significantly louder than other types of weed eaters, much heavier, and produce a lot of noise. They also take more work to maintain.

Weight

Finally, you will want to consider the weight of the weed eater. Because you must hold it steady as you work, you do not want a tool that is heavy enough to tire your muscles or make them start to feel weak. Most weed eaters are under 10 pounds, but keep in mind with gas weed eaters that this may not include the weight of the fuel once filled.

As we noted above, this weed eater is our pick for the best weed eater. We feel that out of the weed eaters we reviewed, it offered the most versatility, making it ideal for the majority of homeowners. The first thing that caught our attention was the adjustable handle. This makes it easy for anyone to use it, including multiple members of the same household. And since it is just 9 pounds, it will not cause much strain.

The next feature to grab us is the 40V MAX lithium battery. This is a heavy-duty battery that will allow you to get a lot of use out of the weed eater in between charges. It won’t be quite as much use as you would get with a gas-powered weed eater, but it comes pretty close.

The 13” radius of the string is another big selling point. This is a large radius, allowing you to take care of more weeds and grass at once. However, it is still small enough to allow you the control you need.

Our second choice weed eater is ideal for those with smaller properties and who cannot handle heavy weed eaters. This weed eater weight only 5.2 pounds, making it one of the lightest weed eaters on the market. It also features an adjustable handle, allowing you to find the perfect length for you and making it easy to go back and forth between users.

The plug-in design does mean that mobility is limited. However, this is also what allows it to be so light in weight. The weed eater does not come with the power cord, so you will need to purchase it separately.

A unique feature of this weed eater is that it is designed to minimize vibrations. This is very important for those with nerve conditions, as well as for anyone who doesn’t like the after effect of feeling like their arms and hands are still vibrating after the job is complete.

This week eater is very similar to our number one pick, offering the same battery power, the same cutting radius, and the same adjustable handle. However, the number one pick has been reviewed as lasting longer, which is why this option comes in at number 3 instead.

The other big difference between the two options is that this one is a combination kit. In addition to the weed eater, you also get a sweeper. Operating at 120 MPH, the sweeper is easily able to move debris out of the way so that your yard looks nicer and cleaner. It weighs in at just 4.7 pounds and is designed to have a low noise output, making it ideal for suburban use.

If you have a large yard or you need a weed eater to use as a professional landscaper, this is an ideal choice. Compared to other models, it offers the longest run time and the widest range, with a 17-inch cutting radius. Due to the large radius, you can complete large jobs in less time. However, if you need to do precision work, you may need to supplement with a smaller weed eater as well.

In order to feel comfortable using this weed eater, it is best if you are of medium to tall height and have plenty of upper body strength. This is because the handle is not adjustable, so shorter individuals will struggle with it. Additionally, it weighs in at 11 pounds before fuel is added, which means that you need plenty of upper body strength to control it.

Since it is gas powered, it is a noisy machine. However, since you are likely to use it on larger properties, this is unlikely to be a concern. But if you live in a suburban area, you might want to take noise pollution into consideration.

If you are looking for a weed eater that is a good mix of lightweight, powerful, and mobile, this is a good weed eater for you. At 8.2 pounds, it is the lightest battery-powered model on the list, making it easier for you to use over an extended period of time. And unlike electric models, the battery power allows you freedom to move around your property.

It does feature the smallest cutting radius on the list, coming in at 12 inches. However, this is not a significant difference and it does make it easy to complete precision work. It switches easily from trimmer to edger, making it a versatile choice. Also, it has an adjustable handle, so you can switch between users without causing trouble.

So, which option is the best weed eater for you? That will depend on the weight you need, the precision you require, and the size of your property. However, we do believe that we have included options that will work for everyone in our weed eater reviews. Happy shopping!